Perception
by oh-woah
Summary: It sounded easy enough to Natsu. Go to school. Investigate the "strange occurances" in the castle grounds. Beat up bad guys. Then go back home to Fairy Tail. His teammates were not nearly as simplistic. But they sure as hell didn't expect this. Betrayal, lies, and love. How do you know when you're looking at the real thing? NaLu
1. Chapter 1

Summary: It sounded easy enough to Natsu. Go to school. Investigate the "strange occurances" in the castle grounds. Beat up bad guys. Then go back home to Fairy Tail. His teammates were not nearly as simplistic. But they sure as hell didn't expect this. Betrayal, lies, and love. How do you know when you're looking at the real thing? [NaLu]

Rating: T

Word Count: 4,048 (admittedly the longest chapter I have ever written. For anything. Ever. Ugh.)

Warning: I have never read any of the Harry Potter books. Ever. So all I know is based on the movies.

Disclaimer: Harry Potter, as well as Fairy Tail is not mine. It never will be. T.T This story is for pure entertainment purposes only, and not made to make any money. Ehem, now on with the story.

Happy Reading!

* * *

**Perception**

**by**

**oh-woah**

* * *

The sun was beautiful and the birds were chirping as Lucy practically skipped to Fairy Tail.

She had just paid her landlord for this month's rent, and to her surprised joy, she still had some extra money. While it may have been a regular occurence for nearly everyone else, extra money was a rare thing for Lucy. Usually, whatever jewels she had collected at the end of a mission would also be used to pay for the damage Natsu had inflicted during the mission. Then she would use what was left over to pay her rent and bills. Thus, no extra money.

Heheheh. Not this time, Lucy thought gleefully.

Oh, she could already see herself in some gorgeous new heels she had seen through a store window yesterday.

Continuing on her way to Fairy Tail, Lucy had a feeling that it was going to be a wonderful day.

Even as she entered her guild and was immediately met with the onslaught the was typical of their guild, it did nothing to deter her happy mood. With some notable skill, Lucy dodged magic and food and thrown chairs as if they were nothing; the girl simply danced around the projectiles and took a spot on a barstool. Levy, who was occupying the seat next to her, had seen the entire thing. She eyed the sunny blonde suspiciously. "Luce?"

Said stellar spirit mage had not noticed her friend's inquiring gaze. "Oh! Goodmorning, Levy!" Then Lucy gave her a brilliant smile. "Isn't today just amazing?"

"Er, yes. Absolutely." Slightly creeped out by her friend's unusual display of cheerfulness, Levy tried not to let it show on her face and slid off the barstool with as much stealth as she could and high-tailed it out of there. The bluenette knew that whenever the blonde was in one of these moods, she would soon be plotting something devious. It would not end well. Levy would _not_ be involved with whatever scheme was brewing within Lucy's head.

Levy had the right instinct, of course. She knew her friend well. The next moment, Lucy's head whipped up as an idea popped into her head. Maybe, if she went and got a mission done quickly, she would be able to minimize Natsu's usual damage! Lucy knew she could do it. She felt lucky today.

_And if we make it home quick enough, I can be home with more money by the time the stores go on sale!_ Mind made up, she turned quickly, her eyes searching the room for her victim. Or victims.

There.

Four tables away, Lucy spotted her pink-haired partner embroiled in a fight with Gray. Not wanting to waste precious time waiting for Erza to end their bickering, Lucy decided she would pull those two apart herself.

Astonishingly, the well-endowed blonde marched up to them and ended their petty arguement with a harsh yank and a push. Natsu choked - Lucy had grabbed his scarf - and Gray stumbled backwards before sitting down on a bench. Lucy was strong enough to manhandle them if she wanted to, despite her petite size.

"There," Lucy said with a satisfied grin, while they looked surprised.

"Lucy," Natsu whined, "What was that for?"

Gray grunted in agreement.

A small, throbbing vein appreared on her forehead, though Lucy remained smiling. "I need to talk to you two morons. I can't do that while you're both trying to knock each other's brains out. Problem?"

His sense of self-preservation caused Gray to shake his head quickly. Damn. Scary woman.

She immediately brightened and clapped her hands together. "Great!"

And not a moment later, Erza arrived, eyeing the scene with obvious interest. It wasn't everyday that you saw two of Fairy Tail's strongest mages cowering. "Hm. What's going on?"

Lucy greeted the redheaded woman. "You're just in time, Erza! You see, I just got these two settled down."

"From what?" they didn't like the way Erza's eyes glinted.

"A fight!"

"Oh?" And she smacked both of them upside the head.

Lucy cleared her throat. "Anyway, I was going to say: Let's go on a mission!"

That's what they had been so brutally manhandled for? _A mission_? Despite having had been arguing earlier, Natsu and Gray shared an understanding look that said, _"Couldn't this have waited until after we were done fighting?" _They shook their heads, but wisely didn't say anything further. Women.

And the two men of Team Natsu remained incredulous as both Lucy and Erza discussed a mission eagerly. Apparently, Erza had come to tell the trio that Makarov was summoning them to his office for an important mission. And Lucy, who had torn their argument apart to demand - er, ask - them to accompany her on a mission was ecstatic and agreed. With that settled, their expectant gazes fell on Natsu and Gray. With the piercing gazes from both women, both the dragonslayer and ice mage had no choice but to reluctantly agree.

Together, the four of them climbed the steps to Makarov's office.

x

x

x

x

x

In a span of ten minutes, Natsu had gone from a fighting-mode, to suprised, to scared, and then back to surprised again. Then he burst out laughing.

"W-What did you say? _Dumb_-door? _Harry_ Potter? Ah, Luce, did'ya hear that?" Natsu guffawed, throwing his head back. Lucy had to admit, the names _did_ sound funny. For a second, she considered laughing along with the pink-haired dragonslayer, but -

Makarov leapt onto his desk and swatted the boy with his fist. "Shut up, brat!"

- she did not want to be subjected to that. The old mage coughed into his fist to draw their attention back to him. "Yes. That's what I said. _Dumbledor_. And _Harry Potter_." Their master waited, probably for Natsu to start laughing again, so he could have an excuse to smack the boy upside the head. It didn't come, to Makarov's relief and slight disappointment. He reaccounted to Natsu, Lucy, and Gray what he had already told Erza. "Dumbledor is an old friend of mine. We met and became friends with him many years ago.

Like the case of Edolas, he lives in a separate world - another dimension. He will explain it better to you four later. Anyway. I called you here because of your mission. You will to travel to that dimension and act as temporary students in his school, which he is the headmaster of."

"School? Ugh," Natsu muttered in distaste.

Makarov ignored the interruption and continued, "There is also a strange matter going on in the school grounds that needs some investigation. You will assist Dumbledor in whatever way he sees fit. For payback for a favor I owe him. I suspect that won't be too much for you four to handle. This mission will last an indefinite amount of time, and it has a possibility of changing from a B-rank mission to an S-rank. I chose Team Natsu for specific reasons," Malarov said pointedly. "I trust this group will be able to complete it. As usual, Erza will be the team leader. Any questions? No? Good."

Makarov didn't give them a chance to answer as he uncorked a vial of blue gas and smashed it into the floor. They group was sent into coughing fits, as it made a small popping sound and the room was filled with smoke. Waving it away, they saw that there was now a swirling hole in the floor of Makarov's office. As they eyed the swirling portal and grasped one another's wrists, something occurred to Lucy.

Makarov had said something about a favor. If it was a favor, did that mean they wouldn't get paid? Her eyes widened in realization. No!

"Come on, Luce," Natsu tugged on her wrist. "Don't want you getting separated!"

And then Lucy was pulled into the hole in the floor before she could protest.

* * *

Lucy swore that she left her heart and possibly all her intestines somewhere on the floor of Makarov's office. As disgusting as that sounded, it was the only way she could properly describe the intense feeling of falling she was going through at the moment.

Vertigo overcame her and before Lucy could open her mouth to scream she hit the ground hard and her heart came back to her in a grinding halt. A cloud of dust rose in their wake. Lucy had landed on her back, and it seemed that she was not the only one feeling shaken. Natsu was still gripping her wrist tightly as they stared at the sky above them. It was almost dusk now, Lucy noticed with surprise. There was a definite time difference. And apparently, the four of them had landed in a forest. Erza was the first one to recover. Titania stood up slowly and her movement snapped them out of their daze.

"Whoa..." Gray groaned as he sat up, running his hands through his already messy hair in a calming gesture. The boys got up, and Natsu held out a hand to help Lucy up. She took his offered hand gratefully.

"Ahh, Dumbledor told me to expect ya!" A loud booming voice startled Team Natsu. A large looming figure, clothed in all brown with a large black beard stood before them menacingly, before his lit a lantern he was carrying to illuminate his face and area around them. He was smiling at them. There was a pregnant pause as they stood there, taking each other in. Fairy Tail did not quite know what to make of him.

"Well? What're ya waitin' for? Dumbledor's expectin' ya. They're probably waitin' in the Great Hall now. Come on. I'll show ya'," and with that he turned around and they took that as a signal to follow him. He whirled around unexpectedly, nearly giving Lucy a heart attack. "Oh! I forgot to mention, but my name's Hagrid."

They stared at him curiously.

_"Nani ga jigoku o itte iru?"_ Natsu blurted. _What the hell are you saying?_

Hagrid looked equally confused. "Wha?" Shaking his head, the tall man turned away from them, muttering under his breath as he led them out of the forest. There was an obvious language barrier, and from the looks of it, no one on the team knew how to speak whatever language Hagrid was using fluently. They cursed Makarov for not warning them beforehand.

Something tickled her memory - and then Lucy gasped, distracted, as they reached the end of the forest and stepped out into a clearing. Or, from the looks of it, castle grounds. From the expressions her teammates were currently wearing, they were as shocked as she felt. After their pause they jogged to catch up to Hagrid, who had turned around to grin at them. "Amazin', ain't it? Welcome to Hogwarts, School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

Though they were facing the north side of Hogwarts, the castle was not any less intimidating. The sun had set already, and the dusky setting was the perfect backdrop for the castle of Hogwarts. It looked absolutely _magical_.

"_Kore wa gakkōde wa_ _arimasen_," Lucy heard Gray mutter. _This is not a school._

And then what Lucy had been trying to remember clicked.

"You... You speak English?" Lucy said tentatively to Hagrid, trying to recall the lessons that had been drilled into her at Heartphilia manor. Natsu and the others looked startled when Lucy opened her mouth and spoke the foreign language. Hagrid wore a similar expression before he broke out into a wide grin. The evening was full of surprises, and the day wasn't even over yet.

"Well, bloody hell! You do speak!" Hagrid winked and she knew he had only been teasing. "Glad to know we can communicate."

Lucy nodded, to the further bewilderment of her friends. _She could understand?_

"Yes. Nice to meet you, my name is Lucy Heartphilia," the blonde replied politely. There was a noticeable japanese accent to her words. Hagrid didn't seem to care.

"Nice to meet you, Lucy."

Growing more confident, Lucy smiled back at the tall man. Those horrible lessons at the Heartphilia manor hadn't been a waste after all! "These are my friends," she gestured to each one in turn. "Natsu Dragneel, Gray Fullbuster, and Erza Scarlet." Realizing that they were being introduced, they each offered a small smile or a grin.

As Lucy continued her conversation with Hagrid, Gray turned to Erza. _"Kanojo ga nani o itte iru ue no nin'i no aidea?" Any idea on what she's saying?_

Erza shook her head. _"Iya." Nope._

_"Toki irai rūshī wa chinpunkanpun'na hanashi o hanasu hōhō o manabimashita ka?"_ Natsu sulked to himself. _Since when did Lucy learn how to speak gibberish?_

Thankfully, they entered the castle without further incident. There were many people here, dressed in strange black robes. The Fairy Tail group earned themselves quite a few stares from students and ghosts along the way, but that was it. After about ten minutes of walking through a complex set of halls and astonishing moving stairs, the group came to a stop before a statue of a gargoyle.

"Well," said Hagrid. "Here we are. Dumbledor's office."

Then the gargoyle statue shifted to the side, revealing a twisting set of stairs. It was quite intimidating, but with some persuasion from Lucy that it wasn't a trap, Team Natsu climbed the steps to Dumbledor's office. Hagrid didn't follow. Instead, he waved goodbye and walked off.

There, waiting for them at the top of the stairs, was another set of doors, guarded by a small shriveled monster. Lucy grimaced, but the small creature simply slid the door open and closed it once they were inside.

The creature was soon forgotten. The inside was so interesting, with things floating here and there, but the most eye-catching of all was the old man standing at the far end of the room, a large phoenix behind him.

"Welcome," he smiled at them warmly. "The group from Fairy Tail, I presume? Welcome, welcome! I am Dumbledor. My old friend Makarov informed me you were coming."

Natsu nudged the stellar spirit mage when she didn't answer. The blonde started and blushed, embarrased. "Y-Yes. Ah, I am - "

Dumbledor interrupted her. "Lucy Heartphilia? Yes, I know. I know you as well, Erza Scarlet. Gray Fullbuster. Natsu Dragneel." At their silence, Dumbledor continued. "I am aware that besides Miss Heartphilia's limited knowledge of English, none of you understand what is being said. Would you like me to cast a spell before we begin going over the details of the mission?"

Lucy quickly gave her teammates the gist of what he was saying. They quickly agreed. Seeing the acceptance in their eyes, the great wizard took out his wand and simply casted: "Intellectus."

"Better?" Dumbledor could tell by the looks on their faces that it had worked.

"Cool!" Natsu exclaimed.

"Hey, I actually know what you're saying, now..." Gray looked awed.

"Thank you very much," Erza said with calm politeness, her pleasure at being able to understand clear on her face.

The old wizard simply waved it off. "You're welcome. Makarov had the same issue back then. But now onto more serious matters. As you know, Makarov sent you here because there have been some strange incidents happening on castle grounds, lately. I'm concerned for the students, since it might have to do with dark magic. Especially Harry," he paused. "Have you heard of him?"

They nodded. Makarov had mentioned his name.

"You will act as seventh-year students and take 3 mandatory classes. Also, at the opening ceremony you will be sorted into your houses. Under that guise, you will investigate and help protect students. I give you permission to do whatever action you deem necessary. You will be able to leave in the middle of class without the teachers arguing. Agreed?"

They nodded again, and with a flick of Dumbledor's wand, Team Natsu had been changed into a variety of the Hogwart's uniform. All four were dressed in a white button up longsleeve with a black sweater over it and a black silk tie. Both Erza and Lucy were in gray skirts that ended just above their knees, while Gray and Natsu had been changed into black slacks. Everyone kept their own combat boots, except for Natsu. His open-toed sandals had been exchanged for combat boots similar to Gray's.

"Where's my scarf?" Natsu demanded.

Lucy feared that Natsu had offended Dumbledor with his question, but instead he laughed. "Don't worry. Your original clothes have been packed into a suitcase. When you find out what houses you will be in, they will be sent there."

Natsu mumbled under his breath but looked relieved.

"You do not have to wear the long robes. Now let's go to the Great Hall for the opening ceremony."

x

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x

It was their seventh year at Hogwarts, and also their last. Ron sat to his left, and Hermione to his right. His friends.

Harry couldn't believe how fast the years had gone by. It seemed like yesterday when he had stepped foot into Hogwarts as a first-year student and then in the blink of an eye he was here now, starting the school year of the last time in the Great Hall. Now he would have to think about what he was actually going to do once he graduated, and not to mention the N.E.W.T. exams later on in the year -

a sharp elbow dug into his side and distracted him from his thoughts.

"Harry," Hermione hissed, "Stop spacing out!"

Deciding to listen to his friend's advice, he tuned back into what the powerful wizard was saying and found that it was actually something of interest to him.

"Before we begin the sorting ceremony for the first-year students, there is a bit of news that might be particularly interesting to you all, especially the seventh-years," Dumbledor was saying. "We will have transfer students this year. Five new seventh-years. You are to treat them with kindness and respect!"

A murmur rose through the students.

_Transfer students?_

_From Beauxbatons? Or maybe Durmstrang?_

"Silence!" Dumbledor commanded, and a great hush fell over the room. He motioned to people sitting at the first year table, and they stood. There were two boys, one with black hair and another with... pink hair. There was a blonde girl, a redhead, and another girl with black hair.

Dumbledor extended his arm with a great flourish, "Please welcome our new students to Hogwarts: Lucy, Natsu, Gray, Erza and Talia."

There was applause, quite a few snide comments about the boy's pink hair, and then the transfer students took a seat. They quieted down to low whispers as Dumbledor started the sorting ceremony. Harry's attention was rivited elsewhere, however, and he noticed that he was not the only one.

There were several others watching the transfer students with the pink hair and the blonde hair as they bickered over something. Then several of their eyes widened in astonishment and interest as a fire appeared on the hem of the pink-haired boy's sleeves and quickly burned them away until the boy was sleeveless. It was gone as quick as it had appeared. Harry blinked in astonishment. He hadn't even seen the boy draw his wand!

The pink-haired boy was pouting now, as the girl turned away from him in exasperation. Harry noticed a red symbol tattooed on the boy's upper right arm. Upon closer inspection, he realized that the girl had the same symbol on her right hand. Was that symbol a sign of where they were from?

The blonde girl stood up, and Harry jerked in surprise, wondering if he had been caught staring. To his relief, she - Lucy, he heard - was being called up to the sorting hat. She was one of the last ones, and Harry had been spacing out for longer than he had thought. The first years had already been placed into their houses. So had three of the transfer students. The redheaded girl and the black-haired boy had been sorted into Ravenclaw. The black-haired girl was sorted into Slytherin. Harry leaned forward, wondering why he was so eager to find where she was going to be placed -

"Hmm. Interesting. Verrry interesting. I can see that you are intelligent. You remain brave and loyal to your friends, even in the hardest situations. Hardworking, even though you are an heiress. You could have been living in the lap of luxury."

There were several eyebrows raised and a few appreciative whistles at the blonde beauty.

"Gryffindor!"

His house burst into applause, louder than before, and Harry stood up to join his friends in clapping. Without really realizing what he was doing, he waved her over to sit with them. She noticed and gladly took a seat between Neville and him.

"Welcome to Gryffindor!" Several people greeted her, and she replied with a small smile and a thanks.

The pink-haired boy was last.

There was a long period of silence after the hat was placed on his head.

"Can we get on with it? I'm hungry," Natsu broke the tense silence, his stomach rumbling loudly afterwards. His statement earned a few laughs, but they were quickly silenced by teachers.

"How unusual," the hat said at last. "I've never seen something like this before. You are quite extraordinary."

Professor McGonagall, who had been standing off to the side stepped up in concern. The hat shook it off, sounding entirely amused. "Well young man. You have certainly surprised me. That is quite a great accomplishment in and of itself. I can tell you strong purpose in life. You are destined for greatness. I can see that now.

Though at times you are reckless and hot-tempered, when you are faced with battle, you show a prowess in that field like no other. Like a great blank canvas, you hold the potential to be anything you strive for. It is only a matter of the choices you make. You obviously care for your friends very much. You are supportive, brave, strong - in both mind and body."

Natsu swore he heard Gray snort from where he was sitting at the Ravenclaw table and resisted the urge to glare at him.

"Remember who your friends are."

Natsu gave into the urge and glared at the ice mage. Gray smirked back.

"And one more thing. Remember, the price of greatness is responsibility."

Knowing that looking at Gray would only rile him up more, he focused on Lucy, who gave him a reassuring smile and a thumbs up.

"Gryffindor!"

* * *

A/N: Well, how was it? Please tell me what you think! Constructive criticism is accepted! :) Especially since I've never written for the Harry Potter fandom before. Also, I don't know if the japanese phrases are right. I looked it up on Google Translate. So if anything is wrong, don't blame me! ;)

Please take the time to review, and tune in for the next chapter of Perception!


	2. Chapter 2

Summary: It sounded easy enough to Natsu. Go to school. Investigate the "strange occurrences" in the castle grounds. Beat up bad guys. Then go back home to Fairy Tail. His teammates were not nearly as simplistic. But they sure as hell didn't expect this. Betrayal, lies, and love. How do you know when you're looking at the real thing? [NaLu]

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and Fairy Tail do not belong to me, nor do any of its characters. This story was made for entertainment purposes only and not to make any money whatsoever. The only thing I own is my plot and my imagination.

Rating: T

Word Count: 4,328

A/N: Happy reading! Any questions you may have will be answered at the ending author's note.

* * *

**Perception**

**by**

**oh-woah**

* * *

"Congratulations! Once again, welcome to Hogwarts," Dumbledore spoke warmly after the last students quieted down. "And to the rest of the students: Welcome back to Hogwarts. I know this will be a great year. Now without further ado, let us enjoy our first school dinner."

Dinner appeared on the tables instantly, and the room filled with the smell of delicious food. There were cries of delight, and though Harry had seen it many times before, it still amazed him.

What also amazed him was how Natsu seemed to appear out of thin air.

Personally, Harry had never seen anyone move so fast in his life. He remembered seeing the pink-haired student from the corner of his eye - he was still far away. And then Harry blinked, intending to fill his plate with some of that scrumptious looking chicken, and Natsu was just there all of a sudden, standing behind Lucy and reaching over her shoulder for the same chicken Harry had set his eyes on.

There were also others around him that seemed to be shocked, but the pink-haired student did not seem to notice. Similarly, Lucy let out a surprised exclamation of, "Natsu!" but she recovered quickly and made room for him. The blonde scooted closer to Harry while her companion settled in quickly and attacked the food.

Literally, that was what it looked like - the boy was an eating machine. Across from him, Neville's mouth dropped open in shock. "Godric's grave, he eats more food than _Ron_!"

"Welcome to Gryffindor," Harry ventured weakly, trying to override the comment.

There was a barely-caught word of thanks from the fire mage. Lucy turned her apologetic smile on him. "Sorry, he's always like this. I swear, his stomach is a bottomless pit."

"Is not," Natsu shot back, finally swallowing enough to talk - before he dove into his food again. "I just like to eat."

She rolled her eyes, muttering something about _too_ much eating, when Harry quipped, "It's alright, I don't think it's possible for Hogwarts to run out of food."

The pink-haired mage let out a whoop of joy, and Lucy managed to look exasperated, even when she let out a small laugh. "Gods, you've unleashed a beast."

The tension seemed to melt away in that instance. The Gryffindors had left Harry to do the dirty work, so to speak - breaking the ice with the intimidating duo. Now that the first obstacle had been cleared, several others were clearly interested in the new transferees and eager to know more about them. Harry, for one, knew what was going through Ron's mind when he leaned forward and asked, "Lucy Heartphilia, right? Are you French?"

Clearly, Harry was not the only one who understood why the redhead was asking the question. Lucy slightly resembled Fleur Decalour, the pretty Beauxbatons' witch from the Triwizard Tournament. It was widely known that Ron had been infatuated with her during her stay, and had been disappointed to learn that she had started to date his elder brother after graduation.

Hermione hit Ron upside the head, while several others laughed. "Am I missing some private joke?" Lucy asked, a smile on her face as she watched Ron and Hermione bicker from across the table. "You just remind us of a friend, is all," Harry answered.

Ron grinned flirtatiously. By then, Hermione had given up on controlling him - she was rather interested at their two new companions as well.

Lucy nodded and gave him a smile, tolerating smile. Beside her, Natsu sighed in contentment and leaned forward on his elbows. Several plates lay stacked to his right. He answered their earlier inquisition with a slightly bored tone. "We're both full Japanese. But I'm also part dragon."

Ron gaped before he regained his composure. "Impossible. I would know. My brother is a dragon expert in Romania."

Inwardly, Lucy shook her head at him in exasperation. _Men. Typical. They always have to show off every chance they get, don't they...?_

Out of the corner of her eye, she caught Hermione harboring the same expression, and they both glanced at each other and smiled at each other in understanding. Leaning forward on her elbows, Lucy began, "Hogwarts is such an interesting school..."

Hermione grinned at the new girl and proceeded to explain facts and details about the old castle.

The rest of the meal continued in a similar fashion - all small talk, everyone slightly less intimidated by their two newest seventh-year Gryffindors - until they were dismissed for bedtime.

The halls of Hogwarts hadn't changed much from what Harry remembered - there were still the same moving staircases and the same talking portraits and the same talkative ghosts roaming the halls. So he didn't know why Lucy and Natsu were making such a commotion - hadn't they seen this all before, from where they came from? They were acting as excited as first years, and it was slightly embarrassing.

"Haven't you seen this all before?" Harry's brows furrowed as Lucy jumped back from another talking portrait, simultaneously dragging Natsu along so he didn't get left behind.

The poor bloke looked sick to his stomach, an arm wrapped around Lucy's shoulders as she supported him. Probably all the food he ate, Harry mused to himself. "Uh, no. We were kind of... homeschooled," Lucy fumbled for an excuse while Natsu groaned, but Harry didn't seem to notice. "Really? That's different," the wizard exclaimed. Beside him, Ron and Hermione glanced at one another, their eyebrows raised in surprise.

_Homeschooled wizards?_

Lucy had hoped that her excuse would deter the wizard's curiosity, but it only seemed to encourage him more. When he looked ready to ask her another barrage of questions that Lucy didn't particularly care to answer, she murmured to Natsu, _"Anata jishin o issho ni hipparu!" _**Pull yourself together!**

He didn't - instead, the mage muttered, "_Karera no shokumotsu to issho ni ittai nani ga machigatte iru?_" **What the hell is wrong with their food?**

Even though it hadn't exactly been what Lucy was asking, it had the desired effect - their words stopped Harry from his questions and he eyed them with concern. "Do you need any help?"

Lucy really had nothing against him - he was nice enough - but at this moment in time Harry was rather irritating. All the blonde really wanted to do was be left to her own devices so she could have a moment to throw a temper tantrum. "Thank you, but Natsu will be fine in a second." Thankfully, they stopped in front of a portrait after they climbed what seemed like endless staircases.

The girl with brown hair - Hermione, Lucy remembered - told them, "The password for the first few weeks is _Holt McDougal_. Remember the rules: don't tell any other house our password. That's all - goodnight, everyone." She left soon after, heading to another staircase, which Harry explained was the way to the Head Girl Dorms.

Astonishingly, the portrait opened, and the students piled inside. Lucy discovered there was a large common room as well as staircases that led to their rooms. By now, Natsu had managed to separate from her.

The dragonslayer asked hurriedly, "Where's the bathroom?"

Harry blinked. "Upstairs, third door on the left."

"Thanks - " was all he managed to get out before he disappeared and dashed up the steps.

"He seems to do that a lot," Harry thought out loud, referring to the pink-haired mage's random appearances and disappearances.

Lucy laughed. "Yeah, you get used to it."

They lapsed into a awkward conversation, until Harry finally excused himself and joined other seventh years on the other side of the room. Laughter spilled from them, and Lucy supposed that she should be over there, getting to know them all better, but the stellar spirit mage couldn't bring herself to care. She sat on one of the tables in the corner, amusing herself with a magical quill until Natsu arrived and sat across from her.

She raised an eyebrow at him. "Better?"

Natsu smiled sheepishly. "Yeah."

Out of the corner of her eye, Lucy noticed quite a lot of students were staring at them and whispering, including the group of seventh years. "_Henjin. Karera ni nani o sagashidesu ka?" _**Weirdos. What are they looking at?**

The blonde opened her mouth to reprimand him - until she realized that no one could understand what they were saying. Which meant that they could converse about whatever they wanted, whenever, and not have to worry about confidentiality - she was confident that there were no students who spoke their native language. Lucy grinned at the advantage, suddenly feeling much better. "_Watashi wa shitte iru. Sore wa meiwaku no yōna monoda, sore wanaidesu ka?" _**I know. It's kind of annoying, isn't it?**

They laughed, and gradually Lucy found herself relaxing even though she knew the other students were still talking about Natsu and her.

Lucy was immensely glad that she had been sorted into the same house as her teammate - at least she knew she wouldn't have to deal with everything alone. She had a feeling that she wouldn't be nearly as comfortable if he wasn't with her.

The rest of the night passed uneventfully - and before long, Lucy found herself rising and stretching her arms above her head as the remaining students (mainly seventh years) said their goodnights and headed upstairs. "See you upstairs, mate," Harry politely nodded to Natsu as he followed Ron up the staircase.

The same thoughts seemed to be running through both of the Fairy Tail mages' heads, because at that moment Natsu wondered aloud, "Going to sleep already?" while Lucy glanced at him sideways and grinned. "I was just thinking that."

It earned the pair a few strange looks, but otherwise they were ignored. Similar to Lucy's earlier actions, Natsu stood up and stretched, his arm muscles flexing as he wandered to the center of the room while Lucy walked over to the large windows.

"It's dark out," Lucy muttered to herself in surprise and then glanced at the large clock nestled above the fireplace. It was nearly eleven - she had completely lost track of the time. They had only been in this dimension for about four hours.

Reluctantly, they parted and went to their separate dorms to try and get some sleep. The girls there were dressing for bedtime, slipping into their nightgowns and putting their clothes away in their trunks.

Lucy did the same, moving almost on autopilot as the blonde quickly did some mental calculations in her head. They had left Magnolia before noon, and when they arrived at Hogwarts, it was dusk. She had spent three hours getting briefed with Dumbledore, getting sorted into a house, and then eating dinner while conversing with her new classmates. About half an hour was spent as they were brought to the Gryffindor Tower, and then the rest of the hour was used for idle chat.

To her horror, Lucy realized that it was only about three in the afternoon back in Magnolia. If her calculations were correct - which they probably were - then that meant that there was an eight hour difference between their separate worlds. She would never be able to fall asleep now - at the most, she would probably be able to sleep in a _couple_ hours.

By then, though, the lights were turned off and the girls were asleep in their separate beds. Lucy didn't know how long she laid there, tossing and turning, unable to sleep - until she decided she had enough. Carefully, the stellar spirit mage clambered out of bed and dressed, cringing when her trunk creaked. Quickly, Lucy dressed and wandered downstairs again.

She was only slightly surprised to see her pink-haired partner there, before she turned to him for help with their dilemma. To her irritation, the dragonslayer merely shrugged. "Let's kill some time, then."

"Doing what?" He actually seemed to think about her question for a moment, and Lucy hoped that he would come up with something fun to pass the time - after all, that was one of his specialities.

"Let's go explore!"

As her hopes came crashing down, so did her body - Lucy groaned and flopped onto the common room couch with a loud whump. "Idiot - what if we get lost? I am _not_ going to do that."

He sat onto the floor near her face and clasped his hands together. "Aww, please, Luce? It'll be so much fun!"

Her reply was slightly muffled since she was lying face-down on the cushions. "No."

"But it'll only be the stairs!"

The stellar spirit mage pondered that for a second, and Natsu plowed on, taking advantage of her doubt. "We won't get lost - even I can remember how to get to the Gryffindor Tower from the stairs. Besides, you seemed really interested in the freaky moving paintings." He could sense her wavering and gave his strongest point. "We could start our mission early, too. You know, by getting used to how they work and where they lead - and checking for anything suspicious." The pink-haired mage gave Lucy the most innocent face he could manage without collapsing into fits of laughter.

Damn, Natsu could be persuasive when he wanted to be - or maybe it was her own boredom talking - because Lucy could feel herself caving into his logic. She sat up, and the fire mage cheered. "Let's go!"

Despite the fact that Lucy was generally a good girl and not nearly as mischievous as Natsu and Gray, she was in Fairy Tail for a reason. Lucy had a sort of rebellious and adventurous streak within her, and she could feel it flaring up in excitement within her now as they snuck out the Gryffindor Tower.

From what Hermione had told her, the prefects and even the Head Boy and Girl, as well as several teachers patrolled the halls at night, ready to catch any students out past curfew. They couldn't have possibly organized everything so soon, so they were probably safe - that was Lucy's reasoning.

Sure enough, the coast was clear after a cursory glance at the halls she could see from the staircase in which she stood. They could finally explore the moving stairs they had been so curious about earlier.

It was honestly astonishing to the stellar spirit mage - the stairs were still moving and shifting even now, though there was no one but her and Natsu there. To Lucy's disappointment, the paintings were asleep, and only a few cracked open their eyes to peer at them in interest before closing their eyes once more. Natsu didn't seem to care - he leapt from the top staircase and landed on the next with a soft thump.

"Haha~ Luce, come on!" The pink-haired mage held out a hand to her and laughed, excitement flowing through him. It was infectious, and the blonde found herself grinning like a madwoman. There were several doors here, and even more staircases - it was like being in a candy shop for Natsu.

He bounced energetically from door to door, opening each one with reckless abandon. After one particular door where Lucy had sworn she had seen eyes glint back at her, she was far less energetic and settled for watching her comrade, instead. By manipulation of the stairs and Natsu's energy, the Fairy Tail duo eventually found themselves near the bottom of the maze of stairs.

It was noticeably colder, and Lucy rubbed her arms to ward off the cold. The blonde shivered anyway, goosebumps dotting her skin, while she looked down to see where Natsu was. He was about two staircases lower than her, staring curiously at a larger opening farther down. It didn't quite feel right to Lucy - the air was cold and somehow reminded her of a snake.

It made her uncomfortable, for some undefinable reason, and her woman's intuition was telling her that it would be wise to return to their dorms now. "Natsu, let's go back up," she muttered, climbing the steps. "This place feels creepy to me."

She could hear him make his way back up to where she was until he was finally right next to her. "Yeah. It feels weird down their. Like - kind of like Jellal's magic, back in the Etherion Tower. Right?"

She nodded. He paused. "Shouldn't we check it out?"

"We should tell Erza and Gray about it first," Lucy replied. She was glad the dragonslayer didn't insist on jumping from staircase to staircase, like he had before on the way down. "Besides. I'm kinda tired now."

"Man," Natsu whined and put his hands behind his head. They lapsed into a comfortable silence, until they nearly reached the top stairway closest to the Gryffindor Tower. It was taking a while to change, and Lucy could tell Natsu was getting impatient and would jump it soon if she didn't do something. "How long have we been - "

Natsu's hand flew out and stopped her mid-sentence. She was about to protest, until she caught the look on his face - he was concentrating hard on something. Lucy peered ahead, trying to see what he could, even though she knew it was useless since he was a dragonslayer and their senses were much more sharp than a regular human's.

And then she saw him.

A man with gray hair dressed in a black jacket was heading towards them.

Lucy panicked, "Someone's - "

Natsu reacted quickly and covered her mouth with his larger hand, ducking under a small little alcove two stairwells made. Unfortunately, Natsu hadn't been the only one to hear her little slip up.

"Who's there?! Naughty, naughty students... It's not even the first day of school, and we have students out past curfew. You can't hide from me. Right, Mrs. Norris? No one can get away from Filch." Ignoring the last part, it was definitely threatening. The stairs rotated, and both Natsu and Lucy held their breath - until they heard Filch move farther away.

They didn't have much time, though. The stairs would move again, and Lucy knew that it just their misfortune that the next turn would reveal their hiding place to the man. And then they would be caught by Filch and sent to the Headmaster for breaking the rules on the first day - unless they thought of something quickly.

"What do we do?!" Lucy whispered to Natsu frantically. "We can't stay here. We can't make a run for it. What should we do - ?"

"Nothing. Unless..." Natsu cracked his knuckles threateningly and grinned, ready for a battle. Lucy knew he was asking for the go-ahead from her. However, from the looks of it, if she didn't act soon, he would go out and knock the poor man unconscious, regardless of whether he had her permission or not. She had to think, think, think...

And a brilliant thought popped into her head. "Open: Gate of the Twins, Gemini!"

Two blue figures appeared and greeted her, "Hello, Lucy-san!"

Natsu blinked. "Can I go knock him out now?"

"Shut up!" Lucy hissed at Natsu, then quickly gave the spirit her orders. At Lucy's command, they turned into a nondescript brown haired student dressed in the school's robes. Lucy glanced around consciously - they were lucky that they hadn't attracted Filch's attention to this area yet, with all the noise they were making. But that wouldn't last long, she knew. "Gemini, lure him away please, then return to the spirit world once you're far away enough, okay?"

With an affirmative nod, her spirit dashed out of the alcove, and Lucy fervently hoped her plan would work. The staircase would rotate any minute now... To the blonde's immense relief, moments later she heard Filch cackle. "Got you now, brat. Don't think you can run away!"

The stairs rotated and both Lucy and Natsu froze. The dragonslayer was the first to react - he pressed against her tightly against the corner and tried to hide them in the shadows.

For one heart-stopping moment she could clearly see Filch's back over Natsu's shoulder.

If the man turned back around, he would see the Fairy Tail duo in the alcove, as they were directly behind him. Their spot provided no protection, and Gemini's efforts would go to waste.

The world slowed and came to a stop.

Lucy was suddenly aware of everything - she could feel the adrenaline rushing through her veins at the prospect of being caught with Natsu - especially like this.

Every one of her soft curves were pressed against his lean, hard muscles, which were tensed and ready to move at any moment. It was only because they were pressed so intimately against one another that Lucy could clearly feel his racing heart beat in time with hers. Natsu glanced down at her and grinned.

And the world returned to normal, suddenly, when Filch interrupted the spell that had seemed to overtake them. "Hey, get back here! Stop!" Filch ran down the hall after Gemini.

The blonde's eyes widened. "Natsu - this is our chance - "

She didn't need to say any more. The pink haired mage picked her up with ease and moved her so that he was giving her a piggy back ride. Lucy's arms wrapped around his neck, dangerously close to falling, as the dragonslayer dashed out of the alcove. Despite the risk, Lucy still found her mouth opening to protest. "Put me down, Natsu!"

He let out a happy, energized laugh. "It's faster this way!" And he proved it, too, when he leapt from staircase to staircase until they reached the one that led to the Gryffindor Tower. Natsu took off running at top speed - and Lucy couldn't help but let out an exhilarated laugh. They were safe. His arms tightened around her thighs, and then Natsu was laughing too.

She didn't know who had murmured their password, but the next thing Lucy knew was that she was collapsed on the couch, clutching her stomach as she and Natsu laughed their heads off together.

"We actually made it back," Lucy said breathlessly once their laughter had died down to soft chuckles and giggles. "That was so much fun!"

"Told 'ya so," the fire mage drawled. "But I wonder how Gemini is going to get away..." Lucy giggled again, coming down from her adrenaline high. "They'll be fine - I just have to wait until they return to the Spirit World."

Natsu waited with her, and they talked until Lucy felt a pull on her magic which signaled her spirit returning to their world. Giving them a silent thanks, the blonde stood up and stretched. It was almost two in the morning at Hogwarts, and Lucy decided that she would be able to go to bed now.

As she climbed the stairs that led to the tower, she grinned back at her teammate. "Night, Natsu!" He echoed her statement, and with that, Lucy entered the girl's room and fell into her cool sheets for a comfortable sleep.

* * *

Lucy felt like she had barely fallen asleep when she was woken up again.

A girl - _Lavender_, Lucy thought - was standing next to her bed and shaking her shoulder. "Wakey, wakey, transfer - you'll be late for the first day off school!"

The blonde groaned.

* * *

**A/N:** Okay. As usual, sorry for any mistakes grammar/spelling-wise, OCC-ness or confusion. If you found this chapter boring, I promise it'll pick up more next chapter, so please continue reading!

First of all, I would like to thank all of you for the amazing amount of reviews I got for this story. I really didn't expect that much, and I considered discontinuing it - but then I saw the reviews, and I was like, "People actually like what I wrote, omg." So thank you. Reviews fuel my writing passion.

Second, I'm really really really sorry for not uploading in so long, and then I felt like this chapter was poop. I was going to make it a lottttt longer, but I promised myself I would just make it up to you and upload the next one faster. (I said that last time so please remind me! .)

Okay, so. Talia. A lot of you asked about her, and I was going to make her my OC, but then I changed my mind. I think that would be too troublesome, so I decided to scrap that idea. I'm just too lazy to fix the first chapter. Ignore her. Speaking of which, one of your reviews mentioned something about suggestions and ideas - I think that'd be cool! So leave me your ideas in reviews or PM me and I'll consider them :)

If I forgot to answer anything, sorry! Shoot me a PM, I'll answer.


	3. Chapter 3: Charmed

**Author Note**: Okay... All I have to say is a big, fat, SORRY! - for all those who were looking forward to my story, and those who still read, still review. Without further delay, here is the next chapter!

...

Perception

by

oh-woah

* * *

_Chapter Three: Charmed_

* * *

The Great Hall was a burst of commotion early in the morning. Frankly, Natsu wasn't quite sure what all the commotion was about, all he cared about was eating his fill of the food that had appeared before his very eyes quite _literally._

"Slow down, Natsu," Lucy - looking quite at home in her new uniform and Gryffindor tie - scolded lightly, nudging his arm. She ignored Gray's mumble of, '_Let him choke.' _"What were you saying, Erza?"

The redhead seated across the table merely glanced in his direction before continuing. "... Classes. Did you receive your schedule?"

Lucy took out a piece of folded parchment from her pocket, flattening it out on the table in front of them.

Erza leaned in to take a closer look, the same time Gray put down his ice water and snuck a peek as well. "Charms," Gray observed casually, "...and Defense Against the Dark Arts. Sounds familiar. Aren't we taking something like that?"

The redhead nodded in response to his question. "We all have the same schedule. As it should be." She sighed lightly, as if burdened. "Of course, it would have been easier if we were all sorted into the same house... but the Headmaster couldn't control the sorting ceremony. Even if he could, I'm sure it would have caused quite an uproar, if four people of the same age were sorted into the same house," Erza observed wryly.

"So he's making it up and putting us all in the same classes," Lucy finished. "Ah."

Natsu looked up from his food with an expression that clearly showed his distaste for their so-called 'required classes.' "I thought we were supposed to kick some ass, not _study_." The simple comment launched a whole new argument among the four guild mates, and they continued to bicker, oblivious to the chatter of the student body around them.

"What are they _doing_?" Sitting at the Slytherin table, Draco Malfoy had a clear view of the group of four. Disgust evident in his voice, he scoffed. "Transferees," he rolled his eyes, spitting the word out as if it were a curse. "I never thought I'd see the day when Ravenclaws and Gryffindors finally became all buddy-buddy with each other."

Without another word, the blonde heir stood from the bench, abandoning his food. It was about time for his Charms class, anyway. Crabbe and Goyle, sitting nearby, stood as well, following their leader.

Meanwhile, at the Gryffindor table, Hermione gathered her books and nodded to her friends. "Ron, Harry," she called to catch their attention. "We should go - there's class in fifteen minutes."

"Sure, 'Mione," Ron agreed through his mouthful of food. "Just a 'sec."

"Ugh, say it, don't spray it, Ron," Harry chided, wiping away a fleck from his cheek. The Golden Trio made their way out of the Great Hall slowly, passing by the group of new students at the far end of the table, in the process. They sat near the first-years sat, except the small children had scooted away to give them privacy - out of fear or something else, Harry didn't know.

Truthfully, he felt guilty for not making more of an effort to talk to them the night before - it had just been a little awkward, not knowing what to ask them about. To make up for his blunder, Harry tapped the blonde girl as they passed. She turned curiously, glancing at the wizard. "Class is going to start soon," he smiled slightly, as her companions looked startled.

"Oh, thank you for telling us, Harry," Lucy nodded and smiled back. She gestured for her friends to stand. "We don't even know our way around here yet," she added sheepishly.

Hermione and Ron, who had noticed their friend stop, paused and heard their dilemma. The Head Girl frowned slightly at this news. "That's going to be an issue. I'll make sure you lot have a tour by the end of the day. But for now, we can help you find your way around. What class do you have?"

Erza answered for them. "We all have Charms. By a - " she glanced down at the paper she had taken out. " ...Professor _Flitwick_?"

Natsu, apparently tickled by the name, snickered. Even Gray, who rolled his eyes right on cue, looked amused.

Not paying much mind to their reaction, the Hogwarts trio shared a mutual look of surprise. Hermione was the first to snap out of it, anxiously glancing at the time. "Well, let's go then. We have the same class, and I'm sure the professor won't appreciate it if we're late."

* * *

They had reached their class on time, much to the group's relief.

However, halfway into the lesson, and Natsu was already bored out of his mind. He didn't understand a single thing their midget of a professor was yammering on and on about - and from the looks on his nakama's faces, they were in a similar situation. Well, they _had_ come during the middle of the year.

Erza and Lucy were at least feigning interest, their gazes directed to the front of the classroom.

"Now I have explained the spell for today's lesson, please take out your wands," Professor Flitwick commanded in his high-pitched voice. "The phrase is 'Point Me.'" He demonstrated with his own wand, which floated out of his hand to hover in front of him. It clearly pointed North, acting like a compass, as the spell was designated to do.

Harry, who was already familiar with the spell from his experience in the Triwizard Tournament, had completed the spell. Hermione followed suit.

"Whoa! Where can I get one of those stick-thingy's?" Natsu blurted, watching his classmates and their levatating wands. Their teacher walked through the rows, approving of a students' spell or correcting a mistake.

"A wand, lad, not a stick," their professor corrected as he came to a stop in front the mage, eyeing him peculiarly, as Lucy elbowed the dragonslayer in the ribs. "Speaking of which. Where is yours?" He glanced at the fire mage as well as at Lucy, who sat next to him. "And yours as well, young miss?" He glanced at their particular row, finding that _all_ the new transfer students did not, in fact, have wands. Nor was it hidden in the lapels of their robes - because they did not wear the standard black wizard robes, either.

The class, previously practicing the seemingly simple but actually difficult spell, stopped their work to watch the scene in interest.

"Barmy," Ron muttered under his breath, his voice taking on a joking tone as he turned to Harry. "No wands? What do they do, pull magic out of their arse?"

"Hear that?" Draco smirked and leaned over to Crabbe and Goyle. "Seems like the old coot has finally gone senile. Letting Muggles in. What a joke!"

Shaking his head, Professor Flitwick quieted the class down. This questioning was his mistake - he had vaguely heard Dumbledore mention this in a meeting - though he hadn't actually believed it was quite true. Wandless magic? The idea was preposterous, because not only was it incredibly hard, but it was also dangerous and difficult to control. From their lack of wands, though, it was apparent that these youngsters did indeed practice that magic. He trusted their Headmaster's judgement, and was more than a little curious to see their abilities for himself.

Now was not the time, however, and with a wave, he assigned their homework and dismissed his class for their next session.

* * *

The next class proved to be a more interesting subject to the pink-haired dragonslayer - Defense Against the Dark Arts - or DADA for short. The names in this world gave Natsu endless amusement to make up for the boredom.

Their teacher was new this year, as apparently there was a curse for DADA teachers - they never lasted longer than a year. He was a tall man with a rough and rude attitude. Natsu didn't mind, that was just fine with him, he dealt with these sorts of people all the time. The other students, however, seemed intimidated.

"Defense?" He had scoffed in class. "You just need to kick ass."

"And you would know anything about fighting, young man?"

"Enough to beat you easily." He couldn't help the taunt, he was _bored_ - ignoring the gasps from the students and the glare he could feel from Lucy, Erza, and the ice bastard.

"He's dead," someone in the room muttered.

That was how he found himself standing on the duel platform in the classroom, readying himself for a spar with the man. He couldn't be bothered to remember his name - Natsu just referred to him as the 'Bear Man,' which fit his appearance and attitude.

"Ready?"

"I'm all fired up," Natsu grinned and cracked his knuckles.

Lucy sat with Erza and Gray on the sidelines, along with the rest of their classmates, watching as her gutsy teammate prepared to take on their teacher in a 'friendly spar'.

"So much for keeping a low profile," the stellar spirit mage muttered apprehensively.

Back on the platform, the man nodded. "Go on, lad," he gestured. "Take out your wand." After a pause, the professor seemed to remember. "Wandless magic - right. Well, let's start."

Natsu let the flames consume his arm, taking comfort from the heat. With a flash, he leapt.

* * *

_To be continued_

* * *

**Author Note:** Sorry it's short! I just wanted to see if people are still reading. I'm officially on break now, so I'll be uploading more frequently!

Read and review, and we'll see what happens, aye? ;)


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